cold hands, hot cheeks, boy hair

Anastasia Beverly Hills ‘Sun Dipped’ Glow Kit

My obsession with illuminators knows no bounds and the ABH Glow Kits are by far the highlight of my collection. The newest addition? The ‘Sun Dipped’ Glow Kit, released just last month.

Following the model of the two previous palettes, ‘Sun Dipped’ contains four large pans of metallic powder, but the shades inside are entirely different to those of its predecessors. While ‘Gleam’ was largely cool toned, and ‘That Glow,’ warm, ‘Sun Dipped’ is a perfect combination of the two.

Claudia Soare, known as Norvina on IG (@norvina1), says that the kit is ‘reminiscent of summer. It represents the sun in various stages of the day, various places in the world, and items that reminds us of summer.’ And it’s true, including shades evocative of both pearly moonbeams and the dazzle of bright midday sun.

Shades:

-Bronzed: ‘amber with a penny metal finish’

-Summer: ‘luminous sand with a white gold finish’

-Tourmaline: ‘warm taupe with a rose gold finish’

-Moonstone: ‘radiant quartz with a pearl finish’

Colour Range:

The combination of pearls, taupes and golds in this palette make it even more universal than the previous two. Though ‘Moonstone’ and ‘Summer’ are very alike, they do appeal to different tastes, the first having only a slightly cooler cast than the second. Fans of ABH Illuminators – now extremely hard to get hold of – will find that ‘Moonstone’ is very (very!) similar to ‘Starlight,’ a favourite for those with fair skin, and that ‘So Hollywood’ is reborn in the shade, ‘Summer.’

‘Bronzed’ is a touch too dark for my skin tone, but it can be layered over bronzer for an ultra sun-kissed vibe. And, for a sucker for warm tones like myself, it makes a stunning eyeshadow, especially with a chocolate brown smoky eye.

I can just about get away with ‘Tourmaline’ on my fair skin, which is lucky because it must be my favourite shade ever. It’s such an unusual combination of cool and warm tones, much like the ‘Riveria’ Illuminator, a rose gold. Depending on your skin tone, it will swatch as either a gorgeous taupe or a gilded pink. Either way, it’s beautiful!

You can also mix shades to create your own custom highlight; my favourite combination is ‘Moonstone’ and ‘Tourmaline,’ which together create a lovely pink champagne colour. Once I’ve applied a bit of fake tan and some extra bronzer, however, the mix of ‘Summer’ and ‘Bronzed’ will help bring the perfect glow to my holiday snaps! The possibilities, though not quite endless, are many: just dip your brush back and forth between the shades to combine the powders and voilà!

Texture & Staying Powder:

As with the other kits, the powders aren’t exactly creamy, but are rather very finely milled. Though this causes a fair amount of fall-out, they are extremely lightweight and are less likely to cake when layered over cream based foundations or concealers. It takes a few swirls of the finger or brush to really gather up the pigment, but dampening your brush – ideally using a mixing medium like MAC Fix+ rather than water – can really help achieve maximum shine.

Unable to decide between ‘Gleam’ and ‘That Glow’? Then the ‘Sun Dipped’ Glow Kit is ideal for you and makes for the ultimate makeup companion this summer. Will you be taking the plunge? Coming soon to Roses Beauty Store!